A Legend of Remnant
by chris.dickson1994
Summary: While searching for something he had lost, a young man finds himself in a strange new land. Unsure of how to get back, he does what he always does: fights monsters.
1. Chapter 1

Neo gave her next target a once over. Some country bumpkin by the looks of him. Sure, the boots were nice, and the leggings were pretty okay, but he looked like he was wearing a green dress, and a short one at that. The goofy green hat wasn't helping either. But that wasn't going to stop her noticing how he held his weapons. A sword and shield - not that there was anything wrong with the classics, people wouldn't use it if it didn't work - sat comfortably in his hands. As young as he looked, he wasn't some newbie. Although, given she was here to stop him wrecking Cinder's plan by singlehandedly decimating the Grim population in the forests near Vale, that was a given.

Cocking her head to the side slightly, Neo locked eyes with him. Most people spoke up by now, but not this guy, not a peep. It was refreshing, some silence. Hard to get around Roman, he loved the sound of his own voice too much, not that she blamed him.

Shaking her head slightly, Neo focused back on her assignment. He was still just looking at her, barely moving. She shifted slightly, and just barely noticed him tense, ready to move. The sword tip shifted slight, shield moving to cover just a fraction of an inch more of his body. Waiting for her to make the first move.

Flashing the newcomer a quick grin, Neo dashed forward, parasol already moving. A quick stab through the throat to end things-

The shield came up, blocking her thrust, and was followed almost instantly by the sword, a quick slash she could feel as it only just missed her. Bending over backwards, Neo dodged under the blade, close enough to see her grin reflected in the metal. Tumbling backwards, Neo flipped her parasol around and dashed forward again. Feinting high, she hooked the curved handle around his ankle and pulled hard.

He backflipped, then rolled to the side, before springing back to his feet, shield raised. Neo just settled her parasol on her shoulder, waiting to see what he would do. He just stood there, eyes focused on her like she was the only thing in the room. It was the kind of look a girl could get used to. Neo gave her parasol a little twirl. She would let him make the first move this time.

He took a single step forward before leaping at her, sword raised high above his head. Neo blocked it almost lazily, but the combined weight of the strike and her opponent forced her to take a step backwards. He somehow landed silently, thrusting his sword at her like a King Taijitu and just as fast. The next handful of seconds were spent warding off possibly the fastest assault she had ever been under. Being the stronger but slower opponent was a new experience for Neo, but not one she disliked. She had just found the rhythm to his attacks, and forced a gap large enough to get her own attack in when he closed the foot-wide gap between them and shoulder checked her. She rocked backwards just long enough for him to grab her by the upper arm and bodily swing her at the ground. She twisted in mid air, bringing her feet under her and rolled, returning the favour.

She lay on the ground next to him for a moment, both of them stunned from the impact. Neo recovered first, getting to her feet and putting some space between them. He was on the ground a fraction of a second longer, rolling to his feet, blood running from his nose.

Wait. Blood? Neo had to take a second look, but that was blood. Had his aura been depleted the whole time? He had been fighting the Grimm for about a week as far as Cinder had been able to tell, so he must have been on his last legs. She was so distracted she almost didn't notice him pulling something out before he pointed it at a nearby tree. There was a quiet click as something shot out, hit the tree and then he was zooming towards it, vanishing amongst the trees seconds later. Neo gave chase, but he clearly knew forests better than she did.

Qrow was worried. He'd been out and about around Vale, just doing some tidying up, clearing out whatever Grimm managed to build up this close to the kingdom, making sure nothing got too big. Normal, everyday Huntsman things. But there were no Grimm.

There were _signs_ of Grimm - prints in the dirt, claw marks in bark, small animals killed but not eaten, but not very many. It looked like someone else had been here and done a very good job, but that shouldn't have been the case. There should have been no other Huntsmen out here, they should have been away on assignments. That was why Ironwood was providing security. Then he saw the blood. He was pretty sure everyone was accounted for at Beacon, but he had snuck out for a few hunts himself when he was a student. But, while he couldn't say anything about it, and Ozpin probably wouldn't, Glynda would tear them a new one. Especially if they were still out here with a depleted aura. It wasn't a lot of blood, and seemed fairly fresh, so they probably weren't dead.

Qrow followed the trail, small as it was, till it ended at the foot of a massive tree. There was just the tiniest bit of blood on the trunk itself. Glancing up, he caught a glimpse of blond hair.

"Hey kid, get down here. We gotta get you back to Beacon before Goodwitch loses her marbles."

There was a pause, then the sound of twigs snapping and a little blond kid dressed in green dropped from the tree about a foot from Qrow, rolling away.

"You got a name kid?" Qrow asks. He nodded, but didn't say anything. "I'm Qrow, by the way." Still nothing. "Good work with the Grimm out here, but maybe stick closer to the school next time. Well, you must be tired. Let's get you back to Beacon, just stay close to me." The kid nodded and fell in step besides Qrow.

Qrow gave the kid - he really needed to find out his name - a look over as they made their way back to the school. The kid was young. He looked like he was about Ruby's age really, and he probably would have heard from her if there was another kid as young as her at Beacon, if not from Ozpin. He wasn't from Signal though, and there was no way he could have made it from one of the other combat schools to here by himself, not at his age. There were some villages outside the kingdoms, but if a kid had wandered away from any of them word would have went up, and they were all days away so there was plenty of time for someone to notice. And besides, none of them dressed like the kid did. He didn't think anyone did, and considering what some Huntsmen wore that was saying something.

Luckily, they weren't too far out from Beacon, so it only took a couple hours to get back. As tired as the kid had to be, he didn't lag behind or even stagger once, just kept going with the sort of dogged determination you really only see in people who walk everywhere nearly all the time.

Despite the lack of conversation, Qrow did manage to learn a few things about Finch. He wasn't new to cities, despite the clothes, but cars of all things caused a bit of surprise, one that was quickly gotten over. After that nothing but tiredness crosses his face as Qrow leads him up to Ozpin's office, having called ahead when they reached Beacon proper. Ozpin was behind his desk, mug in hand, Glynda on his right.

"Found this kid in the forests east of the city. He did quite a number on the Grimm out there. He one of yours?" Qrow asked.

"I have never seen him before," Ozpin said. "So it is very unlikely he goes to Beacon. I may be mistaken, however. Glynda?"

The Huntress was tapping away at her Scroll. "No, I don't recognize him myself, and I'm not finding anyone matching his appearance or weapons in our records. I'm guessing he's not from Signal?" she asked, glancing up at Qrow long enough to see him shake his head. "Hmm. From one of the other schools, perhaps? Here for the tournament? The lists we have should have held the names of every student coming here, but some do sneak over. What do you think, Ozpin?"

"I think I would like to know why our guest hasn't made a sound." The other adults in the room turned to face the blond boy.

"He didn't say anything on the way over here either," Qrow mentioned. "At first I thought he was just worried about being caught doing some extracurricular stuff, but I think he might be mute."

"That makes some things more difficult," Ozpin said, taking a sip of his coffee. "But truth be told I think this can wait until after the tournament. The singles matches are later today, and then there's the award ceremony. Yes, best leave this till tomorrow." Another sip. "But first, can you write your name for us?"

The boy blinked, then started rummaging around his person, producing a lot of pretty strange stuff. There was a boomerang, and going by the metal glinting on the edges not a toy one, a bow and a few dozen arrows, what looked like a handheld grappling hook, some sort of instrument, and then finally a letter. The kid held it like it was the most important thing he owned. He showed it to Qrow, tapping a word.

"Link. Your name is Link?"

The kid - Link now - nodded. Well, it wasn't like Qrow could throw stones in the name department.

"There should be an empty room, on the fourth floor of the east dormitories. Qrow, I'm sure you remember the way? And perhaps, while you're over there, you should stop by and see your niece? I'm sure Miss Xiao Long would greatly appreciate a visit from you."

Qrow knew a dismissal when he heard one. From anyone else, it would have rubbed him the wrong way, but Oz had earned it, so he tapped Link on the shoulder. "C'mon. That means they want us gone so they can talk about us behind our backs."

Five minutes later Link was passed out in his bed, still in his clothes. Closing the door behind him, Qrow decided he might as well go see Yang while he was here. He had planned to leave it for a bit, let her talk to her team, but if Ozpin thought it would help her, then it at least probably wouldn't hurt.


	2. Chapter 2

Link was awoken by the sound of screams.

It was night outside, the strange shattered moon hanging high above, its silvery light illuminating the battle below the window. Groggy and grimey, with no idea what was happening, Link saw some of the same monsters he had battled in the forest chasing people around, between trees and buildings. Not knowing his way around this castle and not wishing to waste time, he took the fastest way down. He lept from the window, into the branches of the tree below, going from bough to bough until he was around halfway down. There, he waited with sword drawn for the monster to chase someone close to the tree. It wasn't a long wait.

Leaping from the tree, he landed close to the beast, rolling under it and thrusting upwards with both hands. His sword sunk easily into it's chest and he could feel the will of the Wolfos-like beast leave its body even as the body itself began to fade.

"God damn…" Link turned to see the person he had saved standing there, staring at him. It was times like this he missed Navi the most. Which said something, as he missed the little fairy a great deal. All Link was do was wave at the person until they finally understood, which thankfully didn't take long. With a hurried 'thanks!' the person ran off, picking up another couple stragglers from their hiding spots.

That one taken care of, Link took a moment to survey the battlefield. This was the first time he had been part of a large scale battle like this. He had… missed Gannondorf's invasion of Hyrule, after all. He wondered if that had been as chaotic as this, with monsters battling soldiers in small clumps everywhere, and some people fighting on the side of the monsters. Not sure of what else to do, he followed the path the one he had saved had taken, stopping to deal with any monsters that came near. There were quite a few, as every one he killed seemed to make the others only angrier. After a long, slow slog across the castle grounds, he found the first bit of organised resistance. A group of around twelve or so people, in the middle of a courtyard, hemmed in by what looked like a pair of massive Darknuts that seemed to be giving them some trouble. Thankfully, the group seemed to have their full attention.

Drawing his bow, Link nocked an arrow and concentrated, a faint blue glow appearing at the point. Taking careful aim, he loosed the arrow at the back of the left knee of the lead metal thing. Ice blossomed around it, anchoring it to the ground just as it went to take a step. Some of the group took advantage of the momentary stumble and piled on it, while others held back the second. Another arrow froze an arm, if only for a moment, which was all that was needed. As tough as it was, it didn't last long, and once it was gone they were free to focus on the remaining foe. Link made his way over as they managed to destroy it, though not without some injuries. A dark-haired man in green was sent flying, while a girl with rabbit ears - not the first such person Link had seen, though the first with rabbit ears specifically - looked like she should have broken her arm.

"Nice shots there, kid. Really helped us out." One of the girls, dressed all in brown, came over. "Names Coco, though you've probably heard of me." She gave him a long look. "Now, I know Ruby earned her place here and all so it's not impossible, but aren't you a little young to be at Beacon?"

Link just shook his head. Not that he really had much idea what she was talking about, but he felt things would be easier if he wasn't labeled as a child. "Riiiight, sure. Why don't you stick with us, watch our backs?"

The one dressed all in white came over. "Coco, I'm going to look for Ruby. Are you able to manage without me?"

"We'll just have to be, won't we?" Coco said, with a smile. "Go find her, we're going to look for survivors and find some place we can send them." The girl in white nodded, sheathed her sword, and ran off towards the centre of the castle.

"Okay!" Coco said loudly, getting everyone's attention. "Here's the plan. Fox, Neon and Reese, you're our scouts. I want you out ahead, looking for people and concentrations of Grimm. Sage, Yatsuhashi and Nora, you're the rearguard, that means you guard our rear. Try not to get too distracted. Everyone else, spread out but not too far. First thing we're doing is a trip around the grounds, plugging whatever way all the damned Grimm are using to get here. Get ready, we move out in five minutes." There was a bit of grumbling, but no serious complaints. While they were all getting ready, Coco tapped Link on the shoulder and walked a little bit away.

"Listen, kid, I know you probably want to go out and be a big damn hero, but please, just stick close to me, and I'll make sure you get through this, okay? Don't make this harder for me than it has to be."

Link shrugged his shield into his hands and drew his sword, keeping the point low. Gods, how he wished Navi was here. How was he meant to tell her that he would be fine, that he could take care of himself, and had?

"I'm not saying just sit back and do nothing," Coco said. "I'm sure you went so Signal or got training somehow, but this is serious and I don't want any of the others getting distracted looking out for you. Anyway, what's your name, kid?"

Link repeated his previous method of showing his name, taking out Zelda's letter and showing it.

"Link, huh? And who's Zelda, a friend of yours? Is she at Beacon?" Link shook his head. "Well, that's probably for the best at the moment." Something behind Link caught her attention. "I think everyone's ready to head out. Let's go."

The two moved back over to the main group. To Link, everyone seemed a little bit more tense than they had been a few moments ago, but there was also a hint of excitement to them.

There was no big speech. Coco simply looked around once, nodded, then said, "Move out."

They moved out.

Monsters fell on them almost immediately. They sprang from nearby shadows as if by magic, the Wolfos-like creatures leaping over the heads of those closest to strike at the ones behind, while yet more appeared and engaged those farther out. A distraction, splitting the groups focus. Surprisingly smart, for what he had seen of these creatures so far. It didn't help them. The group tore them apart with ruthless efficiency, Link barely managing to help with any before they were all down, dissipating like mist under the morning sun.

"Good work everyone, but don't let it go to your heads," Coco said. "Now back to your places everyone, and let's keep going."

They set out again, and the atmosphere was just that bit more confident, that but more excited. Link walked next to Coco, eying up her strange weapon. She caught him looking and hefted it slightly. "Like what you see? I'm pretty proud of this thing, built it myself, do all my own maintenance. Weight was the big issue, didn't want something too heavy out in the field, but I got it down to something manageable. Well, ammo was the big issue, but that was easy with my semblance." She glanced down at his sword and shield. "When we get outta here, I'll introduce you to Pyrrha, I'm sure she'd be happy to give you some tips. She's probably one of the best swordswomen in Vale."

Link smiled. It would be nice to meet someone who used a sensible weapon.

Link was no stranger to long nights. When one has the Ocarina of Time, and can play the Sun's Song, you stop trusting that night will last a certain amount of time. When you live the same three days over and over for longer than you care to count, and the time on the clock only serves to tell you how long you have left before you must go back again and meet everyone for the first time once more, you learn to do what you need to do right away, no matter the time, how tired you are, or where the sun is in the sky.

For all the training the hunters had, it seemed that wasn't among it.

Perhaps he was wrong. He _had_ just woken up at the start of the attack, while they had been up the full day. But they were barely a third of the way around the school - a school called Beacon, he had learned - when they had to stop and rest. Link took the first watch, not that anyone tried to stop him.

Wandering a small distance away from everyone else so he would actually be able to hear something coming before them and provide a warning, Link watched the dragon circle the tip of the tallest tower, roaring its fury for all to hear.

A blinding white light and an almost familiar feeling of peace washed over Link, coming from the tower.

Glancing at Coco, Link tapped his chest, then pointed at the tower. He was sprinting off before Coco was on her feet. It took time, some creative use of the longshot and a few almost impossible leaps, but he made it to the top of the tower, the first to reach it after whatever happened. There he saw a girl in red and black, collapsed on the ground, a woman, clutching at her face, trying but failing to scream, and the petrified remains of the dragon that had circled down tower, shattered in pieces and fading to mist. The woman looked over when he reached the peak, tried to say something, but only clutched at her throat in silence. Glaring it him as if he had been the one to injure her, she staggered to her feet and ran off the edge of the roof, one of the flying monsters catching her scant seconds later.

Nonplussed, Link made his way over to the only other person on the roof. Whoever she was, she was breathing, deep and steady. Asleep, or otherwise unconscious. Nothing he could do for her, certainly no way he could carry her down the path he had used to get up. All he could do was guard her and wait for someone he knew to arrive.

It wasn't a long wait. A few minutes, and the second person he had met in this strange place dropped out of the sky as if from thin air. Qrow frowned at him. "How'd you get up here, Link? Nevermind, dumb question. Did you see anyone else here when you arrived? A woman, bit shorter than me, dark hair?" Link nodded. Qrow ran his fingers through his hair. "Dammit, missed her again. I need to find Ozp- oh god Ruby!" He was over by Link in a flash, kneeling down next to the girl. "Are you good to get yourself down?" Not waiting for an answer, he picked Ruby up the way one would carry a baby and started walking towards the edge. "If you see any other students tell them- no, just lead them out. Glynda and Ironwood are in the city proper, you should be able to get there without much trouble. I'll meet you there." And then he jumped.

Link ran to the edge, and watched them fall for a few seconds before they vanished in the darkness. Sighing, he started his own way down, doing his best to ignore the glowing triangle on the back of his hand.


	3. Chapter 3

AN: Messed up formatting first time, had to repost.

* * *

Qrow sat at the Vale airship docks, waiting for a Bullhead to come take his nieces home. God, Taiyang was going to kill him. Ruby was at the top of the tower with one of them and Yang lost an arm. Something clanged to the ground next to him. Qrow very carefully didn't jump, because jumpy huntsman don't last long, but he did turn to see what it was.

Link was placing what was left of some bronze armour on the ground next to him. It kinda reminded him of what the Nikos girl wore. He had a sinking feeling in his stomach there was a reason for that. Looking over at Link, who was scuffed and dirty from his climb down, he asked, "Find it at the top of the tower?" Link just nodded, before sitting down next to Qrow on the other side of Ruby. The blond nodded at the Ruby and Yang, both of whom were asleep on stretchers. "My nieces. Taking them home to their dad. They'll be fine. Well, Ruby will be. For Yang, that depends on her as much as anyone else, really."

Link looked over at Yang, letting out a quick hiss through his teeth when he saw what Qrow meant. It was probably the most noise Qrow had heard him make. Reaching behind him, Qrow pulled out his flask and took a swig. Savouring the burn, he watched Bullheads come in to pick people up for evacuation. "You got anywhere to go, Link?" He saw the kid shake his head in his peripheral vision. Qrow sighed, even as an idea came to mind. But first, he needed some answers.

"What brought you to Vale, kid?" Thee young blond looked up at him, a small frown on his face. A tiny part of him wondered if Taiyang had a kid he didn't know about. The resemblance wasn't huge, but there was enough to be believable. "You're not from around here, that much is obvious. And I doubt you walked through that forest for God knows how long just to see the sights." The kid's frown deepened for a moment before a hand reached up and brushed his ears. "Those are a bit odd, yeah, but it's the little things that gave you away. So, what brought you to Vale?"

The kid paused for a moment, before writing a word in the dust on the ground.

 _Looking._

"Looking for what?" Qrow asked. More writing in dirt. He'd have to get the kid to write up what he saw at the top of the tower sometime. It was good to know he could write, meant his childhood hadn't always been as bad as it was right now.

 _A friend._

"A friend? What do they look like, if they're at Beacon I might have seen them." Link shook his head.

 _Not here. Blue._

As tired as he was, it took Qrow a second to parse that. "Gonna need a bit more than that kid," he said, putting his flask away.

Link shook his head. Not if you saw her.

"What, is she bright blue all over?" Qrow asked.

Link nodded. Qrow stared blankly at Link, then reread what he had written, just to be sure he had read it right the first time. "Well, to each their own, kid. Anyway, I've got a proposition for ya. Now, I'm gonna be doing a fair bit of travelling in the future. That means I can't exactly keep an eye on this lot," he said, waving a hand over Ruby and Yang. "So, you do me the favour of keeping an eye on them for me, and I'll keep an eye out for this friend of yours. Sound good?"

Link gave Qrow a look. Why me?

Qrow shrugged. "Honestly? I'm not sure. I mean, yeah, the little I've heard about you has all been good, but it's mostly just a gut feeling." Qrow could see he wasn't quite convinced. He seemed like an alright guy, but given how far he was willing to travel while unable to speak this friend of his was probably something special, so Qrow could hardly blame him with not trusting the search to a nearly perfect stranger. "If I could, if I had anyone else I could ask to watch them, I would. But I don't. I don't have anyone else who can do what I need to do, either. It has to be me. And I can, y'know, actually ask people if they've seen this friend of yours." The last part had been nagging him for a while. Sure, the kid's willingness to search for his friend was great and all, but how much did he expect to do without being able to ask people if they had seen them? He clearly knew this as well, from the way his shoulders slumped, as if a heavy weight had been lifted. "So, whadya say?"

Link sighed and shook his head slowly. Qrow leaned back. "Well, offers open until we leave, if you change your mind. Would make my job easier if nothing else. You know which way you're headed?"

Link nodded towards the rising sun.

"Okay, here's what I'm thinking. You come with me when I take these kids home. You get some rest, some supplies, I've even got a spare map you can have. All I ask is, when you head out, you be extra thorough in taking out the Grimm you come across. It'll be slow going, but it'll start you to the west of here, meaning you won't have to backtrack all that way."

It took a few seconds, but Qrow could see exactly when Link made his decision. The kid wore his thoughts not his sleeve. He went from a slight frown to complete confidence as quick as lightning, back straight, head high. He looked Qrow in the eye and nodded.

Glynda came over a little after that. Qrow had settled into an easy silence with Link, nursing at his hip flask - he had earned a drink after today, dammit. Link just watched the sunrise.

"There's a Bullhead waiting for you," she said. That was something Qrow liked about her. No beating around the bush, right to the point. The skirt didn't hurt. She didn't seem surprised when Link stood up with Qrow, only waving her crop to lift Ruby and Yang into the air, floating them towards the Bullhead. Link followed next to them, Qrow walking a bit behind with Glynda.

"So he's going with you?" Glynda asked, eyes still on his nieces.

Qrow nodded. "Doesn't have anywhere else to go."

"And I'm sure that was your only reason for it."

Qrow didn't respond, only offering Glynda his flask before taking swig himself. She refused, of course, but there was a fraction of a second of hesitation.

"Qrow, tell Taiyang…" Glynda began, before trailing off, staring up at Beacon. "Tell him I'm sorry."

A single drink didn't seem like enough, so he took another. "Yeah, we all are." He put his flask away - it was empty anyway - and boarded the Bullhead, taking a seat next to Ruby and Yang. Glynda stood outside, watching them leave. The ramp closed and a few seconds later they were in the air.

* * *

This wasn't the first time Link had ever flown - if being picked up by a giant eagle counted as flying - but it was by far the smoothest, and the first time he could actually enjoy the view. The world was beautiful from this high up. He could see this part of the Lost Woods stretch towards the horizon, while on the other side of Vale, a crimson forest went on just as far. The two forests, split by the ruined city, was fit for any work of art he had seen in Hyrule Castle.

The landing was a little rocky, going by the annoyed look on Qrow's face, but eventually they had landed on the little island the girls apparently called home. The ramp moved - a ramp and a door, amazing - and on the other side was a man who looked a lot like the still sleeping blonde girl. He saw Link, then glanced over at Qrow.

Qrow held up his hands defensively. "Now, Tai, I can exp-"

"Let's get these two inside, then you can explain," the blond man, Tai apparently, cut in, barely looking at Qrow once he was inside the ship. They worked in silence, moving the two stretchers into the house.

There next few minutes was a quiet flurry of activity that Link did his best not to get in the way of. The girls were taken inside, with Link occasionally being asked to carry or fetch something. He learned something of the girls' conditions, namely the only thing keeping them asleep was exhaustion. Yang's arm had been cauterised when he was removed, so some emergency healing from 'one of Ironwoods people' meant she would be fine when she woke up, same with Ruby, which should be soon.

Once everything was settled, Link followed Taiyang into another room, where Qrow was already seated, feet up on the table. Taiyang threw something to him and he snatched it from the air without really looking at it.

"Mind picking up some extra supplies for me? There's a list in the bag." Taiyang asked him. Qrow grunted something at Tai as he got to his feet and headed outside. As soon as he was out the door, Taiyang took his seat and snapped his finger, pointing at the seat across from him, looking at Link. "Sit."

Link sat.

Taiyang was silent for a moment, head bowed, forehead pressed against his clasped hands. "The first thing I want to say is thank you." He looked up, blue eyes drilling into Link's own. "I dread to think what that, that _woman_ might have done to my little Ruby if you had gotten there even a few seconds later. So thank you." He rubbed his face wearily, then sat up a bit straighter. "You're welcome to stay here as long as you want, though Qrow told me you're looking for someone?" Link nodded, and Tai grimaced. "I know what that's like. I wish I could offer some advice, but I never found the one I was looking for." The pair lapsed into an easy silence.

The girls awoke a few days later. Link never saw Yang, and Ruby only once, as he was getting ready to leave. She came downstairs as he was doing a final check of his supplies - a small amount of food and water, some money, the map Qrow had given him. Satisfied it was all securely packed, he made to leave. Taiyang looked up from fussing over Ruby for a moment to nod goodbye, and then Link was outside of the cabin. He heard Ruby's question of, "Who was that?" followed by Taiyang's answer of, "One of Qrow's strays."

Taking a second to orientate himself, he set off to the east. Trees soon surrounded him, and it was almost enough to make him feel like he was back home.


	4. Chapter 4

Qrow left not long after Link, trailing a bit behind him just to see how he did. He figured the kid would be fine when took down the first score of grimm without much trouble. Satisfied, Qrow headed east. Like every time he took this form, that of his namesake bird, the urge to just fly away hit him. It was always tempting, if only for a fraction of a second, because of how easy it would be. To just go where noone would ever find him. But he had promises to keep, and many miles to go.

Even as the crow flies, Mistral was still a while away. While a Bullhead would have been faster, without a doubt, it was also trackable, and could be taken down by a decently sized flock of Nevermore. They weren't exactly cheap either. A boat between the continents was cheaper, and they likely wouldn't have people watching for him on the coast yet. Plus, flying like this, he could get an idea of grimm movements between kingdoms.

And he loved flying.

So eastward he flew, stopping every now and then to take care of some grimm harassing a town or just any he thought were getting a bit too big for their boots.

A little over a week after leaving Patch, he was sitting in a bar on the Mistralan coast, getting himself ready for another long-haul flight, when one of the staff brought him a drink. "From the woman at the end of the bar, " the waiter said, pointing.

Qrow looked over to where the woman was sitting, a corner booth with no windows, half her face hidden in the shadows. Grabbing his drink, he made his way over.

"Sphyrn," Qrow said, sitting across from her. "Have to say, I wasn't expecting to run into you. My sister tends to be the one keeping track of me."

She smiled at Qrow, all bright white teeth and bright red lips. "Well I happened to be around, so I was sent. Besides, Raven is a busy woman. She leads the tribe now, so she can't drop everything just to check in on you."

"Around, where you? So you're doing my old job then?" Qrow asked, swirling his drink. It was pretty good stuff. He didn't want to know where she get the lien for it.

Sphyrn shrugged, but Qrow could see the grin she was trying to hide. "I was the best person for the job." The _better than you_ went unsaid. Sphyrn was good, Qrow could admit that, but she wasn't as good a scout or spy as him. She was a bit better in the information gathering department, sure, but information is no use to anyone if you can't pass it on, which he beat her at handily. Besides, she wasn't born of the tribe, visibly so. She didn't have the hair for it, or the eyes. She could have been nigh omniscient and he still would have been put ahead of her. Well, before Raven took over, at least. The best thing he could say about his twin was that she was fair.

"As nice as this is, I doubt you wanted to just catch up with an old friend," Qrow said, finishing the drink.

"Right down to business, huh? What happened to the fun Qrow I used to know?" Sphyrn asked. Qrow leveled his best unamused stare at her. It was a pretty good imitation of Glynda, which meant it worked. "Fine. Raven just told me to keep an eye out for you. Said she had some questions she wanted me to ask you. She wanted me to ask, and I quote, 'does she have it?' That's it, full question."

Qrow threw back the rest of his drink. It was pretty good stuff, not his favourite but still good. He knew what she meant, what 'it' was. There was really only one thing it could be. "No, she doesn't. It's as safe as I could make it." Sphyrn looked at him for a long moment before realised that's all she would be getting from him. "I want something in return though. An answer for an answer seems fair to me."

Sphyrn nodded. "Okay, so what's the question?"

"Ask my sister, 'do you know where she is?'"

"More cryptic bullshit?" she asked, sighing wearily. "Fine, I'll ask her. 'Do you know where she is?'" Sphyrn finished her own drink and stood. "How should I get the answer to you?"

Qrow grinned at her. "The usual way."

"You know I hate that," Sphyrn replied. When Qrow said nothing, she threw some lien down on the table and said, "You and your sister are going to be the death of me, you know that?" With that, she turned and left.

"Thanks for the drink," Qrow called after her. Leaning back, Qrow waved over the waiter that had brought his first drink. "Keep 'em coming," he said, handing over the lien Sphyrn had left. "Make sure noone bothers me and I'll double your tip."

The waiter had been about to say something, but his mouth snapped shut at those words. Nodding, he went to get Qrow his drink.

For the first time since Ozpin went AWOL - and he refused to think he was dead, maiden powers or not - Qrow thought things were going well. Link had been a stroke of luck, someone who could clear out the grimm that would get in Ruby's way, and if he had read the kid right, someone who would help when the time came. And then running into Sphyrn instead of his sister? It was like someone up there was looking out for him. It wouldn't last, the good times never did, but Qrow was going to make the most of this one - starting tomorrow.

Neo wasn't a fan of the countryside. Sure, food had to come from somewhere, and she certainly didn't want all those people living in the city, but that didn't mean she wanted to spend any amount of time there. Sadly, Cinder had different plans. The Grimm population outside of Beacon was falling a fast enough to be a potential problem, according to whoever gave Cinder orders, so Neo was sent to find out why. Again.

But apparently some Grimm getting done in was worth paying her to come out here, halfway between nothing and nowhere. And her services weren't exactly cheap.

Of course, quick results still got a bonus, and also got her out of here, so she was doing her best to track the cause of this disturbance. It was annoyingly familiar. A steady path of increasingly recent fights, the odd broken arrow, and the even odder drop of blood, those signs and more pointed back to _him,_ the green hooded kid from before Beacon fell. Against him, forests just wasn't a fair fight. And sure, she prefered unfair fights, but only fights that were unfair for her, not against. His clothes were basically camouflage, for god's sake.

He hadn't killed every single grimm in his way. Doing that would only pull more grimm to him, which he would have to kill, pulling more and more in a vicious cycle. But he had killed enough to make even the dumbest grimm scared, and the older ones wary. They watched her as she passed, making no sound, only visible as glowing eyes peeking out from the darkness between trees. It wasn't creepy to her, not anymore. But there was a primal part of her that raised the hairs on the back of her neck and was tensed to _leave_ at the slightest provocation.

Eventually, however, she left the grimm behind, which was disturbing to realise. Grimm would go no closer to this kid. The question on her mind was, why? It wasn't fear. Grimm couldn't feel emotions themselves, everyone knew that. Then again, everyone knew that grimm were mindless beasts, with no-one controlling them, and Neo knew that wasn't right.

Not for the first time, Neo wondered if they were just sending her away so they could figure out how to get rid of her without her finding out. It was what she would do, after all. Hard to foil plots against you when you're a hundred miles away. There was no way she was the best person for this job. Still, she was confident she could take some of them with her even if she couldn't- Neo stopped. She had rounded a particularly large tree and found herself face to face with the kid. Or, more accurately, face to sword point.

The kid was clearly just as surprised to see her as she was time see him.

Slowly, Neo raised her hands, palms outward. The kid watched them for a second, then motioned at her umbrella with his sword. Even slower, she drew it then dropped it to the ground between them. Without taking his eyes off her, he kicked it behind him, smoothly stepping backwards over it before picking it up.

Somewhere behind her a beowolf howled.

His eyes flickered behind her, and for a fraction of a second she thought she could feel the cold breath of the grimm on the back of her neck. He looked torn, but must have come to some decision. Stepping aside, he waved her passed him. She could see a small fire glowing in an old, hollow tree. He waved again, towards it, and she moved. As she passed him, she saw him scan all around, no doubt searching for grimm. Had that howl been planned? There had been none before or since, so it had to be. What game was Cinder playing?

There wasn't much room in the hollow tree, but luckily they were both pretty short. He didn't seem to have much in the way of supplies, but he gave some to Neo, then sat down next to the fire, feeding some twigs into it, the entirety of his attention seemingly on the small fire between them. Her umbrella was behind him, along with his shield, but his sword was planted in the ground between them, almost insultingly. Neo sat across from him, legs tucked under, and ate.

The kid had her curiosity piqued, she had to admit. The fact he was the only other mute she had met didn't exactly hurt either. Shame about the whole trying to kill him the first time they met though. He seemed like a good guy. Roman would have hated him. Still, orders were orders, and the client was the client. The wind started up outside, and brought with it the baying of beowolves.

The kid glanced outside, then started dumping dirt on their fire, killing it. Soon they were in darkness, with the howling of wind and grimm outside. Every new howl was closer than the last, and made the kid turn to face towards the sound. Neo waited until he was facing away and reached for his sword.

When Neo woke up, it was to the sun shining down on her through the little hole in the tree. She blinked blearily, the world slowly coming into focus. The first thing she noticed was that she was alone. The second was her umbrella next to what looked to be a bottle of water - unopened even - and some food, energy bars. She reached out for them, but her hand was stiff. Holding it up, she was a little confused to find bandages - well, strips of cloth from somewhere - before, but then memories of last night came back. She had reached for the sword, but before she could even brush the metal she had felt like she was staying at Cinder's displeasure. The lack of pain was odd- oh wait, there it was. God dammit.

Opening the water with her off hand was not easy, but she managed it. With her hand like this, she wasn't going to be able to kill the kid any time soon. Nor could she go back to Cinder. If they weren't already planning on removing her, being injured and failing would only make it more likely. Plus, she didn't want to walk through grimm territory while unable to fight. So what to do? Well, Cinder had said to find out about whoever was killing the grimm, as Plan B should Plan A not be possible. Time to follow the kid some more.


	5. Chapter 5

Not for the first time since he had left the little mountain cabin Qrow had taken him to, Link wondered what was wrong with his luck. The first person he meets in this place attacks him. The second takes him to a school, which gets attacked. Then he goes to someone's home, and nothing attacks for a bit, but then it's back to monster infested forests, again with the pink haired woman wanting to fight him. And now he was lost.

Link hadn't seen the pink haired girl in a while now and he couldn't help but be a little worried. He didn't like leaving her behind like that, not after she had attacked him when they first met. It would almost be preferable having her here just so she wouldn't appear around a random tree in the middle of a monster infested forest again. Plus maybe she would know where they were. He had planned out his route before leaving to pass by as many settlements as possible in the hopes one of them would have word of Navi in them, and while he should hit the next one soon it was hard to be sure.

Thankfully, it seemed the goddesses were feeling kind today. Shion didn't look to be all that large, but it seemed nice, with the early afternoon sun shining down warm but not harshly, the common sounds of a busy village washing over him. He could almost pretend he was back in Kakariko.

He spent a fair bit of time wandering around, listening to what was being said around him. He picked up a bit of news, though nothing that sounded like his friend. The town had had trouble with bandits recently, and expected to have more soon, based on previous visits. A small pocket of dust had been found under someone's field and they expected to make some decent money off of it, enough to replace some of the equipment they lost when they found the thing. More and more farm animals were going missing recently.

Link always got a surprising amount of information this way. It was like people just assumed you wouldn't listen in on their conversations.

Spending only a few hours in Shion before passing out the other side, Link kept an extra eye out for any Grimm heading towards Shion, taking a more winding path than normal to be extra thorough. While he couldn't do anything about the bandits - the villagers thought there was around a hundred of them - he could help with the Grimm a little.

It was after he wandered away from the main road that he wondered, not for the first time, if the goddesses liked toying with him. He froze, and for a moment the handful of people he could see did the same. But the surprise lasted only a moment, and then the sound of panic and the taking up of weapons filled the camp. Link scanned his surroundings, considering his options. He doubted they would just let him walk away, even if he could explain his situation. Fighting was not an option - these were no dumb monsters, but people that had managed to survive outside the protection cities would offer from Grimm. He would have to flee quickly. His hands quickly found the hookshot and he was soon flying through the air towards a distant tree. And a second, third, fourth time, until his shoulders and arms ached from the force they were subjected to and he felt like the branches had scraped his face raw. Even as he took a second to catch his breath, he could feel the goddesses blessing fill him, like liquid gold in his veins. It didn't make him any less sore, or let him ignore it better, it just let him keep going, no matter how tired or bruised he became. Lack of sleep wouldn't slow him, nor would any injury short of a killing blow. And there were no fairies here to give their life for his. After a moment, Link stood and began to roll his shoulders, before slowly dropping his arms to his side. Birds filled the lower branches of the trees around him, dozens of them. Crows, ravens, rooks, magpies, and other species he couldn't name. One, the largest of the group, let out a loud caw before taking off, vanishing behind a tree. A woman stepped out the other side. She was taller than Link, with the same feathery dark hair as Qrow, dressed in dark greens, reds and black, with a sword at each hip and one over each shoulder.

"That's quite the chase you led us on. Not good enough, of course, but not terrible." She looked him up and down. "Always a shame to kill the young ones, but we really can't have you talking."

Link heard the snapping of twigs behind him, and a quick glance showed two rather large men moving to block off his escape routes. There was nowhere to go. Link drew his sword and shield. He really did not want to fight these people, but he had too much to do to just lay down and die.

"Oh, someone thinks themselves a little warrior, do they? Well, maybe we could find a place for you in the camp, if you're good enough." The woman sounded almost sincere. "How does that sound? Hot food, most days. A warm bed. People around you, and the open sky above? All you need to do is beat him," she said, pointing behind Link and to his right. That was all the warning he had before a mace the size of his head came slamming down where he had been seconds before. He could hear it whistling through the air as he rolled out the way. He scrambled to his feet in time to catch the next swing on his shield, stopping it cold. For a moment, the only sound was the echo of metal against metal, before the birds filling the trees let out a cacophony of sound all at once, and the fight began again. Link swing low, pushing towards his opponent, trying to get inside his reach. He still seemed stunned by Link's unexpected block, and wasn't able to react fast enough. Link's swipe caught the man's leg just below the knee and struck that strange barrier everyone here seemed to have. Despite that, the force still swept him off his feet, and Link managed to get his sword against his throat. He paused again, waiting for the woman to end the fight.

"Hurry up and kill him already."

Link looked at her, surprised. Sure, they were bandits, but to be so callous?

The woman frowned, pale red eyes locked on his. "What, not going to do it?" Link shook his head. There was a beat, then the woman smiled. "Good, the tribe is family, and family should never hurt family." She strode forward, and helped the downed man to his feet. He came to his feet a little gingerly. "Of course," she said, turned and looking down at Link, "you aren't one of us yet. The leader has the final say. C'mon, we'll take you to her. She'll probably like the look of you enough to let you join." That said, she turned and started walking the way Link had fled from. Link put up his weapons and followed along. Behind them, the flock of birds took to the skies.


	6. Chapter 6

Neo followed behind the Tribesfolk as they led her mark back to their camp, a mask of empty space hiding her from sight. Not a mere illusion, a trick of the mind, like Cinder's pet thief could weave, but a true false image, light and sound and other things reflecting just so in order to hide her presence.

Neo knew she shouldn't be here. Cinder had her orders not to mess with the Tribesfolk, orders she has passed down to Roman, and from him to herself. The Tribe had something Cinder wanted, something she couldn't just take by force, so they were working on courting the Tribe, treating them nice and leaving them alone. For now, at least. But she didn't want to leave the kid with them. He was like her, and the Tribe wasn't a good place to be for people like them. He could handle himself, sure, but the same had probably been said about her not many years ago and look where she had ended up.

Her mark was left by himself in a small tent, guarded by a pair of Tribesfolk, while the rest of the escort dispersed around the camp. Even hidden as she was she couldn't just walk past them. A lot of the Tribe had better senses than normal humans, though not as good as most Faunus, and scents had always given her trouble. They would need to eat eventually though, once they did she could sneak in, free him and then…

Roman had always thought of the plans.

She would think of something. Besides, he had to be wandering around for a reason. Maybe she could help. Probably beat working for Cinder.

Still, while she was here she might as well look around. It would give her a chance to see where sentries were station, which would be good to know when sneaking out. If she was careful, and kept to the edges of the camp, it shouldn't be a problem. Plus, she'd heard rumours that Qrow Branwen could turn into a bird, and wondered if his sister could do the same thing. With names like Raven and Qrow it was almost enough to wonder if their parents had been prophetic, or if whoever gave them the ability just had a sense of humour.

She didn't have long to look around though. It was getting towards night now, and food was being passed around the camp. Neo had lifted some small things while she had wandered around, fruit and a bit of cured meat - she hated food like that, there was a reason she stayed in civilisation dammit - but nothing that would be noticable. Still, the food didn't smell that bad. Raven clearly knew a group like hers lived and died by their stomach. With the camp filled with the smell of cooked food and everyone a little distracted by the thought of a good meal, Neo figured now was probably the best time to grab her plus one and leave.

The two guards were still outside the tent, so she was sure the boy was still in there, but maybe there was a guard inside. Laying down behind the tent, she lifted part of the side just far up enough to see under it, masking the movement with her semblance. Looking through the gap, she only saw one set of feet. She lifted the fabric a bit more, to make sure before she went in, and saw only the boy. Slipping inside, she let her semblance drop slowly. To the boy it would have looked like she faded into existence.

He was tied, hands behind his back, with his sword and shield not far from him. That was probably some sort of dumb test from the Tribe, to see if he would try and break his bonds but not escape.

As soon as her semblance dropped his eyes snapped to her. There was surprise, but no fear. Even bound, and unarmed, he looked her straight in the eye. Considering the last two times they had met she had been trying to kill him, that was a little impressive. The kid had some steel to him.

Moving behind him, Neo started working on the knots. They weren't shabby, but she wasn't the second best thief Vale had ever seen for nothing. A minute later blondy was stretching his fingers, no doubt trying to get feeling back in his fingers. Once he was satisfied, he grabbed his weapon. She watched as he picked up the sword, wondering just what had happened when she had touched it. Now wasn't the time for questions though. Moving to the back of the tent, she waved for him to follow, which he did. It was a bit harder, hiding two people, but nothing she couldn't manage. They slipped out of the tent and through the camp easily. It wasn't long before they heard shout behind them though, the guards finally having checked and noticed their guest was missing. Raven would not be happy with that, from what Neo knew of her. She didn't like anyone knowing where the Tribe was. She might even send people out after blondy next to her.

A few hours after breaking him out of the camp, the two of them stopped. Blondy pulled out a map - an actual paper map, not a Scroll - and pointed at it, though not anywhere in particular, before looking at her. Neo circled roughly where she thought they were with a finger. The nearest town, Oniyuri, was a few days away. He must have come to the same conclusion, because he tapped the map while looking at her. She could read the question quite easily.

Are you coming with me?

Roman had known her for years, they went all the way back, so not being able to speak hadn't been a problem with him. She hadn't found anyone else she could communicate with as easily, either before or after meeting Roman. So what if he was younger than her. Without Roman she didn't really have a reason to go back to Vale, not even counting the fact it was now filled with Grimm. And she really didn't want to work for Cinder anymore.

With a smile, she nodded.


	7. Chapter 7

p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: 400; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"The eight days it took to get to the next town were slow and quiet for Link. Slow, because Neo - that was the pink haired girls name, which she had shown him on the strange device she carried - clearly wasn't at home in the wilderness and while whatever strange magic she used was useful for staying hidden from the few groups that had been sent to try and find them, that wouldn't matter if they managed to find their trail. Which basically meant Link spent as much time tidying up after her as he did walking. It wasn't perfect, but it seemed to be enough to keep them ahead of anyone chasing them. /span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;" /p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: 400; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"The first few nights were especially awkward. The girl still didn't seem to trust him completely, because she had tried to stay awake as long as he did. Obviously, she failed, as Link could go for a week without sleep easily. It was part of the blessing the Goddesses gave him, a part that he kept even after Gannon was defeated, and he left Hyrule to search for Navi./span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;" /p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: 400; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"After waking to find herself uninjured and him still there, she seemed to accept the idea that he didn't need to sleep as much as she did, though she did keep an eye on him a bit more at first, no doubt checking to see if he was tired. /span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;" /p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: 400; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"After a week she seemed to get used to him, and Link wondered if he should risk sleeping for once - he didn't need to, but he also probably didn't need boots either. /span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;" /p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: 400; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"They were just outside Oniyuri when they heard it. Shouts, cries for help, the strange barking sound of the weapons of this place. Link broke into a run, and a moment later he heard Neo sigh behind him, but follow suit. /span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;" /p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: 400; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"Link wasn't quite sure what he was looking at to begin with, but to him the whole situation didn't matter. By the time they got there the fight seemed over, with four people on the ground. A fifth was standing over a familiar looking red haired girl, strange weapon on either hand, and a tail bending up over his shoulder as if poised to strike. /span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;" /p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: 400; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"The hookshot was in his hand and fired before he had even made the decision. The tailed person glanced up at the sound, and seemed too shocked to react as Link blew past him, grabbing the red haired girls arm as he went and pulling her out of the way. She let out a pained cry as he did, and cradled her arm when Link put her down in front of the house he had shot to./span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;" /p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: 400; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"Link turned back to see Neo fighting him, and on the defensive. He moved to help. /span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;" /p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: 400; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"Sliding between Neo and their opponent, he barely raised his shield in time to block a tail thrust, the force of the blow pushing him back slightly. Neo's weapon stabbed past him, and was blocked by one hand, while the tail deflected Link's low swipe. They continued like that for a few moments, all of their attacks being stopped seemingly without effort as the smile on their foe's face grew wider and more deranged by the second./span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;" /p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: 400; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;""I must say, this is almost entertaining!" he said, bending over backwards to lean on his tail, dodging a high kick from Neo while parrying a pair of quick thrusts from Link. "Truly, if I did not have more pressing constraints on my time, why I would stay and play with you all day! But alas, my Queen has set me a task, one that must be fulfilled and that you are all woefully inadequate to prevent me from completing." /span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;" /p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: 400; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"Link dodged the next tail thrust by throwing himself to the side, rolling around their opponent. Halting on his knees, Link called upon one of the gifts given to him and slammed his fist against the ground. /span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;" /p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: 400; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"Din's Fire engulfed him. /span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;" /p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: 400; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"The flames swirled around him for the briefest moment before exploding outwards. Neo managed to dodge most of the blast, but their foe had been caught by surprise, sent crashing into a nearby building. For a moment there was only the sound of settling rubble, before laughter rang out from the ruins. Bricks shifted as their foe dug himself out, sections of wall the size of Link's torso sliding aside. When he was out of the wreckage, he paused in the hole in the wall he had made and looked at Link./span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;" /p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: 400; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;""Hah! Oh my, that truly took me by surprise." Light shimmered about him briefly as he walked towards them. "Now, I know of sweet little Neo here from her time in my associates employ, but you I do not know. I am Tyrian, and I would very much like to know your name." He bowed slightly, though without taking his eyes off Link./span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;" /p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: 400; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"Link sliced at Tyrian, moving to the left as one of the others, a man in green, moved in to help, peppering their opponent with something to seemingly no effect. The pink haired one dropped from above, a heavy hammer blow being blocked by the tail. He dodged Link's sword easily, grabbing the blade as it swung by him. /span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;" /p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: 400; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"As soon as his fingers closed around the blade he screamed, dropping the sword as if burned. His hand looked grey and rough, almost stonelike. /span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;" /p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: 400; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"Off balance from his sword being grabbed, Link couldn't react in time to Tyrian's tail. Moving independent of the rest of him, his tail flashed towards Link and plunged into his sword arm. It withdrew after a moment, as the other blond swordsman smashed his shield into Tyrian's injured hand, shattering it. He screamed again and lashed out with his other hand, catching the blond on the shoulder and sending him into one of the buildings. Muffled screams came from under the rubble. The red haired girl swung at Tyrian but missed as he leapt onto the roof of a nearby building, and from there to another, quickly vanishing. /span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;" /p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: 400; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"It was at this point Link realised he was on the ground, Neo above him, concern filling her face. He pushed her back and, using his sword as a crutch, forced his way to his feet, where he managed to stay for a few seconds before fainting./span/p 


End file.
